Friday, April 27, 2007
feedback #2
Well done Myk - you have improved on your case study. Look at some of the other students' blogs and ensure that you have covered every angle.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Gaming Addicts Damage Work, Home & Social Lives
Internet computer gaming is potentially damaging for players' work, home and social life. I have found a survey investigating levels of online gaming addiction.
Online gaming users who are hooked on multiplayer online games can raise social problems. In an online survey of more than 400 gamers who were regularly playing a game called 'Asheron's Call', the research project discovered some players who spent most their time online led to arguments at home and negatively affected their work as well as their social life going downhill. On average they were spending 18.5 hours a week online playing. One player claimed to be spending 100 hours a week online. A survey of the 400 gamers showed that:
Online gaming users who are hooked on multiplayer online games can raise social problems. In an online survey of more than 400 gamers who were regularly playing a game called 'Asheron's Call', the research project discovered some players who spent most their time online led to arguments at home and negatively affected their work as well as their social life going downhill. On average they were spending 18.5 hours a week online playing. One player claimed to be spending 100 hours a week online. A survey of the 400 gamers showed that:
- More than 40% said their social life was suffering
- 30% recognised gaming was interfering with their work
- 40% said it was causing arguments at home
- 50% confessed they were not getting enough sleep
- 35% said they missed meals to carry on playing.
Blu-Ray.......The Next Generation Optical Disc
Blu-ray, also known as Blu-ray Disc (BD), is the name of a next-generation optical disc format jointly developed by the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), a group of the world's leading consumer electronics, personal computer and media manufacturers (including Apple, Dell, Hitachi, HP, JVC, LG, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Pioneer, Philips, Samsung, Sharp, Sony, TDK and Thomson).
The format was developed to enable recording, rewriting and playback of high-definition video (HD), as well as storing large amounts of data. The format offers more than five times the storage capacity of traditional DVDs and can hold up to 25GB on a single-layer disc and 50GB on a dual-layer disc. This extra capacity combined with the use of advanced video and audio codecs will offer consumers a remarkable HD experience.
While current optical disc technologies such as DVD, DVD±R, DVD±RW, and DVD-RAM rely on a red laser to read and write data, the new format uses a blue-violet laser instead, hence the name Blu-ray. The benefit of using a blue-violet laser is that it has a shorter wavelength than a red laser, which makes it possible to focus the laser spot with even greater accuracy. This allows data to be packed more tightly and stored in less space, so it's possible to fit more data on the disc even though it's the same size as a CD/DVD allowing Blu-ray Discs to hold 25GB/50GB.
Blu-ray is currently supported by more than 180 of the world's leading consumer electronics, personal computer, recording media, video game and music companies. The format also has broad support from the major movie studios as a successor to today's DVD format. Seven of the eight major movie studios (Disney, Fox, Warner, Paramount, Sony, Lionsgate and MGM) are supporting the Blu-ray format and five of them (Disney, Fox, Sony, Lionsgate and MGM) are releasing their movies exclusively in the Blu-ray format. Many studios have also announced that they will begin releasing new feature films on Blu-ray Disc with DVD.
The format was developed to enable recording, rewriting and playback of high-definition video (HD), as well as storing large amounts of data. The format offers more than five times the storage capacity of traditional DVDs and can hold up to 25GB on a single-layer disc and 50GB on a dual-layer disc. This extra capacity combined with the use of advanced video and audio codecs will offer consumers a remarkable HD experience.
While current optical disc technologies such as DVD, DVD±R, DVD±RW, and DVD-RAM rely on a red laser to read and write data, the new format uses a blue-violet laser instead, hence the name Blu-ray. The benefit of using a blue-violet laser is that it has a shorter wavelength than a red laser, which makes it possible to focus the laser spot with even greater accuracy. This allows data to be packed more tightly and stored in less space, so it's possible to fit more data on the disc even though it's the same size as a CD/DVD allowing Blu-ray Discs to hold 25GB/50GB.
Blu-ray is currently supported by more than 180 of the world's leading consumer electronics, personal computer, recording media, video game and music companies. The format also has broad support from the major movie studios as a successor to today's DVD format. Seven of the eight major movie studios (Disney, Fox, Warner, Paramount, Sony, Lionsgate and MGM) are supporting the Blu-ray format and five of them (Disney, Fox, Sony, Lionsgate and MGM) are releasing their movies exclusively in the Blu-ray format. Many studios have also announced that they will begin releasing new feature films on Blu-ray Disc with DVD.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Sale Figures Compared - Wii, PS3 & Xbox 360
Sony's PS3 games console sold a record breaking 165,000 units during its first week of sales from 23rd March in the UK, it is interesting to compare the corresponding launch week sales of two of the PS3's major competitors, the Nintendo Wii, and Microsoft Xbox 360.
During its launch week at the beginning of December 2006, the Nintendo Wii sold around 105,000 units, 50,000 of which went in the first 12 hours.
In comparison, Microsoft's Xbox 360 sold 70,000 units during its first week of availability in the UK.
These figures are still early days for the PS3 in the UK, and too early to give an accurate picture of how the three main games consoles are competing against each other until well into 2007.
It is easy for manufacturers to choose specific periods in time to place sales figures in their best light, but it is interesting to note sales figures released by research company NPD Group for the three main games consoles for February 2007
In total, 335,000 Wiis, 228,000 Xbox 360s, and 127,000 PS3s were sold in February 2007 in the US. The Wii is outselling all other consoles in the short term but has ways to go to catch up to Microsoft in terms of total sales. The Latest cumulative figures for the US for the three major games consoles: 5.1 million Xbox 360s, 1.9 million Nintendo Wiis, and 1.1 million PS3s.
During its launch week at the beginning of December 2006, the Nintendo Wii sold around 105,000 units, 50,000 of which went in the first 12 hours.
In comparison, Microsoft's Xbox 360 sold 70,000 units during its first week of availability in the UK.
These figures are still early days for the PS3 in the UK, and too early to give an accurate picture of how the three main games consoles are competing against each other until well into 2007.
It is easy for manufacturers to choose specific periods in time to place sales figures in their best light, but it is interesting to note sales figures released by research company NPD Group for the three main games consoles for February 2007
In total, 335,000 Wiis, 228,000 Xbox 360s, and 127,000 PS3s were sold in February 2007 in the US. The Wii is outselling all other consoles in the short term but has ways to go to catch up to Microsoft in terms of total sales. The Latest cumulative figures for the US for the three major games consoles: 5.1 million Xbox 360s, 1.9 million Nintendo Wiis, and 1.1 million PS3s.
Friday, April 20, 2007
Q-u-e-s-t-i-o-n-s-2-a-n-s-w-e-r
- What were the sale figures for the PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 on the day they were launched?
- Who are the winners and losers of the gaming industry's constant development?
- How is the gaming industry finding new ways to satisfy audience demands?
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Feedback on research #1
Well done, some insight and understanding demonstrated here. You now need to research quotations, statistics and add more depth to your study with secondary resources.
Gaming.......The Future
The market for electronic games is expanding. Today's games produce more realism than ever, which gains more fun and more sales. But, what about tomorrow's? What might an electronic game look like in the future after gaming has become a mainstream form of entertainment? What will the platform be like? What moral challenges will it present.
Many have written about the future of gaming predicting which current hardware platform will dominate in the near term. No matter how far technology advances, certain aspects of gaming will remain constant. The plots and characters of today's role playing games will likely remain. Such elements as the marksmanship of shooters, the thrill of speed in the racing genre, the classic dogfight of flight sims, and the strategising of the oldest game in the world, chess will continue.
Many have written about the future of gaming predicting which current hardware platform will dominate in the near term. No matter how far technology advances, certain aspects of gaming will remain constant. The plots and characters of today's role playing games will likely remain. Such elements as the marksmanship of shooters, the thrill of speed in the racing genre, the classic dogfight of flight sims, and the strategising of the oldest game in the world, chess will continue.
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